The first of two public meetings will be held this Thursday on the FAA’s proposal to make permanent the so-called temporary restrictions and the current air defense identification zone (ADIZ) in the Washington, D.C. metropolitan area. The meeting, presented by a panel of representatives from the FAA and other government agencies, will be held on January 12 at the Sheraton Columbia Hotel, Columbia, Md. The second meeting is scheduled for January 18 at the Washington Dulles Airport Marriott. Since the proposal was published on August 4, the FAA has received more than 19,600 comments, mostly negative, but AOPA is concerned that only about 2,300 have come from pilots in the D.C. area. Said AOPA president Phil Boyer in a recent e-mail to D.C.-area pilots: “I’m appealing to you, as a D.C.-area pilot, for help in defeating the ADIZ. Please tell the government, loud and clear, that the ADIZ does not work.” The comment period closes February 6.